Corruption of the Innocent
by Spirit Summoner
Summary: Dark, semiAU series featuring the cast of YuGiOh! GX. Part One Syrus and Zane. No incest. Because of Zane, Syrus has been put in 'The Facility' a sinister place where nothing and no one are as they seem, eh Professor Crowler...?
1. InZane

**Corruption of the Innocent**

**A/N** That's not a typo, guys – just in case you think I can't spell properly or anything.

Dark, semi-AU series featuring the cast of Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. Part One Syrus and Zane. (No incest)! _Because as long as he was alive, I would lose, but then, even if he died, his ghost would remain to haunt me forever.

* * *

_

**InZane**

Zane Trusdale was one of the very few people allowed within the high security unit known as 'The Facility.' He was also one of the very few people who actually _wanted_ to go behind its heavily guarded gates and immense metallic walls. Then again, he was one of the very few people who had any reason to.

You see, 'The Facility' was an amalgamation of sorts – a fusion between a prison and a mental institution for those deemed too dangerous to live on the outside, and yet too undeserving of death. It was a purgatory for the living (well, it depended on your definition of life, really), where those unfortunate enough to enter were forced to stay.

And wait.

Some even forgot why they were there.

Jaden Yuki was one such man.

Chazz Princeton was soon to be another.

But this is not their story, although one day it shall be told along with those of the others who inhabit the cold walls of 'The Facility.'

Until that day, though, this is the story of a boy with an older brother whose success drove him wild with jealousy and ultimately, insane.

This is the story of Syrus Trusdale.

* * *

_He may have gotten all the smarts and the skills, the charm and the attitude, but Mom says that I got the looks. _

The young boy peered into the mirror. He couldn't see his reflection – it was a pink blur on the surface of the glass. He squinted a little, and this time he could make out the lines of his lips and nose, but it was still a struggle to see.

He tried moving closer, but ended up pressed flat against the full length mirror. Unfortunately, he had forgotten that the mirror was hinged so that the angle could be adjusted to the will of the user and his weight caused the panel of glass to flip over so that he landed in an awkward heap on the floor behind it, his legs and rear parallel with the wall.

"Are you alright Sy?" he brother appeared in the doorway, a look of concern on his face.

_Yeah right, he's probably wondering why he has such a goofball for a brother,_ Syrus thought scornfully.

"I'm fine," he laughed, hoping that Zane would get out of his room.

_Better still, you could get out of my life._

"You sure?" his brother checked.

Syrus slid down the side of the wall in a comical fashion. Zane blanched a little.

"Yeah, see – not a scratch," he announced as he stood up, arms open to illustrate that he was in fact uninjured.

Zane eyed him wearily, but nodded and left him to himself and closed the door as he exited.

"Finally!" Syrus grumbled to himself. "But at least he didn't offer to help."

The last time Zane had offered his help, Syrus had quite literally lost it and began throwing things – anything and anywhere. Nothing of any great importance was broken so there seemed to be no need to inform anyone of what had happened, and besides, Zane thought it was a one-off because he had pushed Syrus too hard and never raised the issue. Even if it was so out of character.

But after that incident he was always somewhat cautious around his little brother.

Syrus picked up his circular frames from his pillow and perched them on his nose, the reflection on the mirror finally clear enough to see.

_That Zane. He's forever butting in with my life – doesn't he have one of his own to deal with?_

His eyesight had never been particularly good, even when he was young.

Unlike Zane.

_Zane…_his mind sneered. _Zane and his perfect 20/20 vision, perfect teeth, perfect grades – perfect life._

Perhaps that _was_ the problem. Zane did indeed have a life of his own – a great one with cool friends and hot girls.

It was the life that Syrus wanted.

* * *

School could have been something that Syrus enjoyed, if only because he was – more often than not – in the more intelligent half of his class. But he didn't. No matter how well he did he never came close to what Zane had achieved. 

Soon it became an obsession for him – competing with his brother's academic ghost.

_Same school, same subjects, same teachers, but never the same grades._

It made him neurotic, he was forever worrying about the next test or assignment that he would no doubt fail, because he never managed to get those A pluses that Zane _always_ got, (on some occasions his work had been so excellent that the teachers had no choice but to award him double A pluses), and to him that was like a fat, red 'F' on his papers.

And so school became a struggle for him. He was nervous and jumpy, snapping at his fellow pupils and sometimes, even the teachers, earning him a frequent place in detention – somewhere he was certain Zane had never been. Not once. Not for Mr Perfect.

In comparison, Syrus felt like Mr Defect.

But there was one thing that Syrus had that Zane did not. Photography – a hobby that he had pursued for many years and was surprisingly talented at. He was a part of the school's Photography Club, and sometimes developed his work at home in the bathroom.

At least it was Zane's final year – then maybe he could finally be free of his older brother. But then he'd have to worry about his brother's new successes – the way he would fly through University, get a great job and continue to lead the perfect life with his perfect wife and perfect children. It was sickening how perfect he was. People would forever be comparing him to Zane, thinking that there was no way that this runt of a boy could be related to the 'Kaiser' as he had become known. He, on the other hand, was 'shrimp' to the guys, and 'pervert' to the girls who worried that he would attempt to look up their skirts.

Not that he particularly cared – it wasn't related to Zane, so it wasn't important to him.

As you could imagine, Syrus had few friends. If any. Although there was one guy he hung around with – another defect, another reject – a fat guy who wore his hair in bunches. Syrus was so desperate to maintain some semblance of popularity and not lose the others company that he started giving the other guy his lunch so that he would stick with him.

_I'm such a loser… _Syrus would think to himself every time he handed over a grilled cheese sandwich as his own stomach growled disapprovingly.

But he soon got used to it and it became routine – he would wake up early and make himself a large breakfast, grab his schoolbag and lunch (careful to slip in a couple of extra snacks to keep him going) skip lunch, stay in school until the library closed and then continue working until dinner. He would hungrily wolf down the meal and disappear back into his room where books were opened and notes made until he collapsed with exhaustion at his desk.

Sometimes he would wake in the middle of the night, because for some reason he would be desperate for food and sneak downstairs to raid the fridge and cupboard. Not that there was ever any junk food kept there.

Although he didn't know it, Zane had caught him doing both on many occasions. When Syrus seemed particularly fatigued he would carry him over from the desk and tuck him in his bed. In that state he always thought that he must have stumbled into bed before he blacked out. He also made sure to always keep something healthy and fairly filling in the kitchen – yoghurt, sometimes fruit, even though he didn't exactly approve of Syrus' secret habits.

But he was worried. He supposed he should have at least told their Mom, but what good would that have done? She wasn't exactly a disciplinarian and Zane doubted that Syrus really listened to her anyway.

He wanted to talk to him, but his little brother was becoming ever more distant from him. Syrus barely acknowledged him some days.

Zane couldn't have known why.

And even if he did, what could he have done?

* * *

The two brothers did however share one common bond and that was a popular Japanese called 'Yu-Gi-Oh!' in which Egyptian Pharaohs and Ancient Priests and such saved the world from evil by summoning monsters from another dimension using giant carved tablets of stone. 

Okay, so the plot was a bit out there, and no one naturally had tri-coloured or wore man-skirts (not kilts – _man-skirts_), that flared out at such ridiculous angles, but it was fun and addictive to watch.

But even though both Zane and Syrus thoroughly enjoyed it, it became another problem for the two of them.

Seeing a clear opportunity to make money, a computer game based on the hit TV show was released by a company known as 'Kaiba Corp.' 'Duel Monsters' became an institution, though of course there were no actual monsters except the ones carefully inked onto the boxes or those rendered in 3D on the television screen.

Zane, being Zane, was a natural, quickly building up an exceptionally powerful army of creatures. He gained a reputation for being unbeatable, and inevitably, he was.

Syrus, however, struggled to master the basics, and was frustrated by his brother's rapid progress while he languished behind. It just wasn't as easy as on the television and no amount of believing in 'the heart of the stone tablets' seemed to help.

"_You need to learn how to play a spell, not just use it,"_ Zane had explained when he had given Syrus 'Power-Bond' a powerful ability with devastating abilities.

_Easy for him to say – people have even started calling him the next 'King of Game!'_

But finally, after much struggle, Syrus seemed to finally be getting the hang of the game through a combination of imitating his brother and challenging weaker duellists until he was confident of his own skills.

And then, well, things went wrong.

Very wrong indeed.

* * *

Just as the Pharaoh Atemu or the High Priest Set were outrageously popular with female viewers, Mana and the Dark Magician Girl were shockingly popular with male viewers. 

Particularly Syrus.

But Zane thought it better not to make a big deal out if – after all, people had weird crushes all the time.

Not him though.

He only loved two things.

Although eventually, a third would enter his heart and capture it.

But, as he would later realise, whatever it was with Syrus was more than a crush.

Much more.

Syrus began to believe that he _knew_ the Dark Magician Girl. Not the actress, the actual character. But he was secretive about her; when she appeared in an episode he would deliberate stand in front of the screen until she had finished her scene, as though she was his and his alone.

Zane continued his watch over his younger brother and noted with a touch of despair the way he still stayed up writing furiously every night. After every page he would stop and read it, screw up his face and then screw up the paper before starting again.

Zane's fingers would twitch – he wanted to read those pieces of paper so much and there were so many overflowing from the wastepaper basket that Syrus wouldn't notice if one was missing… But no, Zane was better than that and he should respect his brother's privacy.

"Urgh!"

Another cry of frustration. Another crumpled ball of paper. Another miss.

But this time it rolled over to the door, knocking gently against Zane's foot.

He glanced at his brother, so engrossed in whatever it was he was writing he wouldn't have noticed if a train crashed into the side of the wall.

Zane scooped up the paper ball, stood and then hesitated.

Sometimes, even Zane didn't play by all the rules.

* * *

Zane waited until he reached his own room, carefully making sure that his own door was shut properly before opening out the creased paper. He didn't know why, but he felt like it was something that had to be done in private, reading it was something that needed to be done as clandestinely as when it was written. 

He smoothed the sheet down with his hands and began to read.

It was a letter. But not just any letter. It was a letter addressed to Syrus.

_Why on Earth would Syrus write himself a letter?_

He had two options, he could read on and maybe find some answers, or he could throw the letter away and pretend that he had never seen it.

But he had, and he needed to know.

* * *

That night, Zane found it very difficult to look at Syrus. 

The letter was still in his mind. The letter written to Syrus, not from Syrus, but from the Dark Magician Girl.

In other words – Syrus was writing himself love letters. From a fictional person. Not even a person – a character; a _cartoon_! Zane would have preferred to have found dirty magazines or something.

And as strange as it was already, the situation got worse.

* * *

One Saturday morning Zane noticed a letter addressed to Syrus.

_You're paranoid_, he thought to himself. _It could be a letter from anyone – you're reading far too much into this._

Zane picked up the letter, glanced at the top right hand corner where the stamps and postmark were. The ink was too thick and smudged for him to be able to make out the stamp so he turned the envelope over to see if there was a return address.

His breath stopped.

_DMG_

_Egypt_

Syrus chose that moment to go out into the hallway, saw the letter and snatched it away before Zane had any chance to think.

* * *

Pretty soon, the number of paper balls in Syrus' room began to decline and the number of letters increased, all with the same writing on the reverse. 

Syruis treated each as though it was a precious treasure, and Zane began to realise that something wasn't right with Syrus. And more importantly, something had to be done.

He broached the subject one day when they were watching 'Yu-Gi-Oh!'

"That Dark Magician is cool, don't you think?" he asked Syrus.

His brother snorted. He had never really liked that guy, if only because Mana and the Dark Magician Girl called him 'Master.'

"Sometimes," Zane continued. "Sometimes I wish that he was real." He watched Syrus stiffen slightly. "But no matter how much I wish that he was real, he's not," Zane finished.

Syrus laughed uneasily. "I don't really understand what you're trying to say."

"Where are those letters you keep on getting coming from?" Zane questioned.

"Uh – the Post Office?" Syrus tried unsuccessfully.

"Sy, I know that you think those letters are from the Dark Magician Girl," Zane told him.

"Well, they are!" Syrus retorted. "She's my girlfriend – why wouldn't she write to me?"

_Syrus is deluding himself…_

Zane sighed. "I also know that you've been writing them yourself."

The expression on the younger boy's face darkened.

"Have you been spying on me?" he spat.

"Syrus, this isn't healthy – it's not right," Zane kept his cool, which infuriated Syrus further. Late nights and such were taking their toll.

"No," he answered. "Do you know what isn't right?" he didn't wait for an answer. "What isn't right is that you're everything, Zane – people worship the ground you walk on and make jokes about how I can even reach the pavement. They _belittle_ me, Zane – laugh, go on – it's funny, isn't it? But it's not right, Zane! It isn't fair that you get all the grades and all the girls and the great life while I have to bribe people to be my friends! It's not right and it's not fair and it's all your fault!" Syrus screamed accusingly.

Zane just stood there and took it, the way he always reacted when someone ranted at him. That of course, wasn't often, but he did have a few jealous people that he had had to deal with in his time. He just never had any idea that Syrus would be one of them.

"I didn't know you felt that way. You never told me." His words were slow and calculated, trying to gauge how to calm his brother.

"Would it have mattered? Face it Zane, I don't matter – I'll never be good enough – I'll never be you."

Zane placed a hand on Syrus' shoulder, unsure of what was appropriate – they had never really been the type for brotherly love.

"I don't want you to be me, Syrus. I want you to stay just the way you are – my brother, because he's the one who matters more than anything in the world to me."

And then he held his crying brother in an awkward hug until there were no more tears to cry.

"You're everything to me, Syrus."

_But that wasn't enough_, Zane thought to himself as he continued along the narrow corridors. _It wasn't enough to save him from himself, to save him from here._

Zane blinked back a lone tear in the corner of his eye.

_I couldn't save him from me._


	2. Sycho

**Corruption of the Innocent**

Dark, semi-AU series featuring the cast of Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. Part One Continued Syrus and Zane. (No incest)! _I loved him enough to do anything he wanted. I even killed myself but then there was no one left to protect him and so he died as well._

_

* * *

_

**Sycho**

It was always hard for Zane to see Syrus. And it was always harder for him than it was for his younger brother. It was harder, mainly because Syrus didn't know that Zane came to visit him.

Zane had always tried to look out for Syrus. He just hadn't realised that every time he shot down a bully he was effectively attacking his brother as well. It was just he felt so damned over-protective of Syrus. After all, for as long as he could remember it had only been their mom, Syrus and him. They never spoke of their father, didn't even think about him really, and so Zane had naturally assumed that role – taking care of both his mother and his brother.

Of course, things had been so much easier when they were younger.

He remembered the day that Syrus had been told he was diabetic and would have to have shots of insulin every day for the rest of his life. His little brother had been so scared – after all, he hated the thought of blood and needles – but Zane promised that it wasn't anything bad, would keep him safe and made him special. Back then, all he had to do was say the words and all was well. For those earlier, glorious years, Zane had been everything to Syrus, just like the latter was everything to the former.

Oh, how things had changed.

The corridors leading into 'The Facility' were so cold and empty, it was almost as though there was no one inside to give it any warmth…But there were, and these people lived in a bubble, contained from all else.

Usually, even each other.

Zane ignored them. It didn't matter who _they_ were. But then, they may be someone else's son, daughter, maybe even brother...

He shook himself out of his thoughts as the end of the corridor neared.

_Funny, it seems to be taking me longer to get here every time_, Zane thought to himself.

There was a large metal door blocking any further progress, bolted and locked electronically on both sides.

A retinal scan, voice test, and unique verifying code (UVC) had to be used in conjunction with a special pass to enter the 'Inner Sanctum.'

Zane was always a welcome visitor in the eyes of Crowler, the Doctor studying those held within the steel chambers. He was wonderful – a specimen of perfection to shine a light on.

The Doctor was strange - some might even go so far as to say 'exotic' - what with his long blond hair, flamboyant manner and very individual choice in clothing despite uniform regulations. Zane had only really ever seen him once. He had to say that once was enough.

"Ah, Zane," his voice rasped through the internal speaker system. "Come to visit your brother?"

"Yes," Zane replied simply.

Although he had no reason to dislike the man, he also had no reason to trust him. There was just something about him - about anyone who would choose to work in such a place as 'The Facility.' He didn't really know much about it, but Zane was suspicious that there was more to the place that met the eye.

"Will you be informing him of your visit today?" the address interupted his thoughts as if on purpose.

Zane shook his head and spoke with a subdued sadness. "No, no I won't."

"Very well," the Doctor said in a flippant manner and buzzed him through yet more checks and locks.

Yes, it did seem to be taking him longer to get through to see Syrus.

But it hadn't taken Syrus that long to get there.

* * *

_He knows…_Syrus closed his eyes, shutting out the world. 

Or at least, that was what he wanted to do, but in reality, he couldn't. All he could think about was the fact that he knew.

Zane knew.

_He knows everything_, Syrus thought. _The letters, the lunches, the late night snacks._

Syrus knew that Zane knew. He had seen it in his eyes. Eyes so full of pity.

But Syrus wasn't angry. At least, he didn't think he was. Anger was uncontrollable and wild, but he seemed calm in comparison.

And after all, he pitied himself as well.

_I'm pathetic. Even my brother feels sorry for me. But this is all his fault. Zane, I'll get you for this. I'll get you for this, big brother…_

He hated the way he felt. The way _he_ made him feel. Syrus wanted Zane to feel the same way as he did. There was only one thing he could do; he would have to make Zane feel equally – if not more – pathetic and useless.

It had already started a long time ago.

Syrus smirked darkly as he made his way into the bathroom.

_Maybe Zane doesn't know everything…

* * *

_

As Syrus drifted into unconsciousness a little while later, Zane entered his room, a cheerless look on his face. He moved to the bed and gently tucked in the sheet around his brother's body.

"Sy, I'd do anything for you," he whispered softly, his voice raw with tenderness.

He had not expected a reply, let alone such a truthful one as what followed.

"Even stop being you, Zane?"

Zane's breath caught in his throat.

"If that is what you want," he replied after barely a second. "If that is what you want then I'll do it."

He loved his brother so much, he did just that.

Zane Trusdale died.

* * *

Surprisingly, it was harder to not be Zane, than it was actually being Zane. For instance, he was naturally gifted intellectually and even if he didn't try, he still managed to achieve excellent grades. So something had to be done. Zane found the easiest way to get around this was to not do the work entirely. 

He didn't care if his grades suffered. He just wanted Syrus to be alright again.

As long as he focused on Sy, then Zane could deal with the look of shock and dark awe on the faces of his peers and the tone of disappointed exhibited by his teachers, but he really had no choice but to maintain his air of nonchalance.

"It isn't like you not to have completed your assignments," they would say.

A casual shrug.

"Zane, I must tell you that many of your teachers have voiced their concerns regarding you."

"Will this take much longer?" Zane interrupted abruptly. Sometimes it was difficult to face up to not living to people's expectations, even if it was for someone as important as Sy.

His tutor looked shocked.

"Just answer me this, do you have any problems, Zane? At home maybe?"

"No," he answered indifferently as he left.

The meetings with teachers were followed by letters and phone calls.

"Zane's been skipping class?" his mother gasped into the receiver.

Syrus strained to listen to the conversation.

"Well I don't know where he's been – this isn't like him at all."

She began to twist the cord of the phone around her fingers, a sure sign of her agitation.

"He's not at home now, no. There haven't been any problems that I've been aware of, yes, he gets on very well with his brother – I've always thought him to be a perfect role model for him."

Syrus frowned a little.

"Suspension!" his mom shrieked. "Is that really necessary – no, of course I understand, but – yes. I know, it would be a shame for him to throw away all these years of such hard work. More like Syrus? Well, I suppose he _should_ be more like Syrus. Yes he is doing very well. Thank you."

It should have been enough for Syrus.

Zane was no longer perfect.

But it wasn't.

He wasn't doing badly because he had no ability, but because he just didn't do the work, and instead of becoming unpopular, he seemed to be increasingly idolised. Recently he had been stopped on numerous occasions and told just how 'cool' his brother was.

No, it wasn't enough at all.

Syrus wanted Zane to fail. Fail at the one thing that meant more to him that anything else.

He had to fail as his big brother.

* * *

Things seemed to continue in the same fashion for quite some time. Zane continued to ditch class, gained a few more suspensions and was even threatened twice with expulsion if he didn't 'pull his act together.' 

But that was all irrelevant. What mattered was that Syrus was happy. Or at least appeared that way. He smiled more, began talking to him again and was doing a lot better in regards to his studies.

But he had noticed that Syrus seemed more sluggish than usual, even though his late nights were becoming more infrequent. There were some days that he seemed like he didn't want to move at all. Zane even thought that his skin was greying.

He put it all down to tiredness and the fact that his imagination was working overtime seeing as he was doing no work at all. And he had his examinations approaching no less! Not that they mattered.

Not anymore.

Zane even thought that maybe his brother's obsession with the Dark Magician Girl was over.

But it was in fact the very opposite. Letters became e-mails after Zane gave him his laptop seeing as he rarely used it for anything besides schoolwork and since he wasn't really concentrating on that, well…

But that wasn't all.

Syrus began PhotoShopping images of himself with the Dark Magician Girl so that it appeared as though they had been out together. On dates. On some he even signed them with a pink lip-stick kiss.

It never once occurred to him that by being so selfish he was ruining all of Zane's chances in life; shattering his dreams and aspirations. He had even given up 'Duel Monsters' for him.

Zane had still been undefeated when he 'retired.'

But that didn't stop him getting two tickets to a massive 'Duel Monsters' Tournament organised by Seto Kaiba, President of Kaiba Corp. and one of the greatest duellist of all time.

Zane couldn't have predicted what would have happened next. And he couldn't stop the tragedy that followed either.

* * *

It was an official event – televised and everything. 

Seto Kaiba himself was not duelling, making only a brief appearance before disappearing again, much to the disappointment of the dozens, maybe even hundreds of girls who had crammed into the arena just to see him.

The main tournament was actually won by a young boy named Yugi Motou who was no stranger to 'Duel Monsters.' It seemed that he had at one stage defeated the creator of the game, Maximillien Pegasus.

That wasn't the problem.

The problem was what came next. A surprise finale where members of the audience were invited on to the stage to duel in a massive battle royale style bout. Obviously Zane was chosen and even more inevitably, he was victorious.

Syrus was already silently seething from all the attention that he had incurred before _it_ happened.

'She' appeared.

Bella Hudson – a.k.a. the Dark Magician Girl.

_The_ Dark Magician Girl.

In the flesh.

And her trademark pink and blue dress, of course.

Syrus drank her in greedily as she descended onto the stage, suspended on an intricate series of wires and pulleys. She was breathtaking – even more beautiful that he remembered her being. She landed gracefully in the centre of the arena and smiled. Syrus knew the smile was just for him.

"It looks like with have a winner!" she declared and began her walk – no, not walk – glide to where Zane stood.

He didn't move at all, or blush. In fact, he seemed totally unaffected by the Dark Magician Girl. Syrus thought he was insane not to break down in front of her. And then he realised that the Dark Magician Girl was moving towards Zane!

_Damn him! He always gets everything I want. Even when he's not trying!_

"Oh my! He's a cute one as well," she winked at Zane.

Syrus felt every muscle in his body tense.

"Congratulations," Bella murmured as she leaned in and gave Zane a gentle kiss on the cheek.

And then, Syrus snapped.

He scrambled onto the stage, his expression dark and menacing.

"Dark Magician Girl," he ground out.

Bella was obviously surprised, and blinked at him as though she was trying to figure out what was happening. She tapped her earpiece.

"Roland? What am I supposed to do?" she whispered.

"_Just play it by the ear – keep the crowd happy."_

So she flashed a brilliant smile that at any other time would have melted Sy's heart. "_Yes_?" her voice was strained.

"How could you do this to me?" he demanded.

Zane suddenly felt very afraid of his younger brother. He looked insane, and was wheezing slightly and clutching his stomach as though he were in pain.

"Do what?" Bella asked sweetly.

"What do you mean, 'do what?' How could you kiss my brother when you're _my_ girlfriend?" Syrus roared.

The Dark Magician Girl gulped. Zane moved protectively in front of her.

"Now, Sy, we've talked about this before," Zane tried, but Syrus stopped him.

"Yes we have, _brother_." He spat the last word as though it was poison. "We talked alright and you said you'd do anything for me," his tone was accusatory. "So what do you go and do? Make out with my girlfriend in front of the entire world!"

"_Roland_…" Bella tried to reach the Head of Security again.

"How could you do this to me, Zane?" there were tears in Syrus' eyes now. "Why do you have to take everything I want and have? Why can't you fail at something for once? Why can't you just die?"

Zane's shoulders shook from the effort of containing his anger.

"What is wrong with you? Do you have any idea what I have given up for you?" he voice was hoarse as he spoke. "I've been expelled, Syrus. I'm not going to do my exams or go to College or anything. What else can I do? Do you want me to die? Is that what you really want, Sy? More than anything else?"

"No," Syrus answered. "I want you to die, but more than that, I want _her_!"

The next few minutes seemed to pass in slow motion. Syrus made a grab for Bella who screamed as he pushed Zane off the stage. Seconds later a gang of uniformed Security officers swarmed the stage. Syrus was handcuffed and then taken away.

Zane was left nursing a sprained wrist, which had been expertly cared for by the medical team that had been on standby all day.

"That was quite the show you all gave us," smiled the pretty red headed nurse when he finally came around.

Zane groaned. "Is she alright?"

"'She?' Oh, you mean Bella! She's a little shaken up, but these things happen all the time so she's used to it. Not even a scratch on her," she told him.

Zane breathed a sigh of relief.

"Wait – where is my brother?"

"He's being held by Security until Mister Kaiba decides whether or not to press charges, but I think he wants to speak with you first."

Now, Seto Kaiba was not a man to be taken lightly. He was rich, successful and powerful; not to mention good looking. 

"I don't want to hear any lame excuses for what that kid of yours pulled out there today, but I want you to understand that that is not acceptable behaviour, do I make myself clear?" he was staring out the window, arms folded over his chest.

"Yes, Sir," Zane answered quietly, in dogged awe of this godly man.

Kaiba turned to face him, he felt himself crumble.

"You're a good duellist, one which I'd like to see more of in future, but let me tell you, if that kid of yours does another stunt like this one, you're history. I always keep my word - remember that the next time you bring that kid outside."

"He's my brother," Zane said weakly.

Kaiba sighed. He really wasn't in the mood for this; he was late and had his own little brother to worry about.

"Listen, I don't really care about who he is, but I can tell you one thing; he has issues with you. I don't know what you did to him, but no kid brother acts like that or says those things without reason. As one big brother to another, trust me, I know." He stopped. "Roland, I want you to escort the two from the premises."

Zane gave a curt bow and thanked Mister Kaiba for his time before leaving, mentally mulling over the CEO's words.

_I've done what you wanted, Sy. What more can I do?_

* * *

The journey home was conducted in silence (mainly because the tranquiliser that had been used on Syrus hadn't worn off yet) and so neither said anything about the event to their mother either, despite her incessant questions. 

Zane scooped Syrus into his arms and took him to his room, placing him gently on the bed.

_When did it all go wrong?_ he wondered.

He sighed, and the sound woke Syrus whose eyelids flickered before opening. Zane noticed that his eyes looked greyer than usual and that even the lines of blood took on a bluish hue.

"Get out," Syrus ordered bitterly.

"Sy…"

"Just leave me alone, Zane!" his voice was a tired croak, scratching his throat.

Syrus was still shaky and unsteady on his feet, but managed to push himself up from the bed and stumble into the adjoining bathroom. The door slammed closed.

Zane shut his eyes in despair.

Inside the bathroom, Syrus was crying. 

_It's not fair, it's not fair. It's not fair!_

His entire body felt like jelly, but he knew what he wanted to do. What he had to do. There was a mirror cabinet mounted on the wall over his sink. He pulled open the door and snaked his hand behind the tubes of unopened toothpaste and bottles of shampoo and mouthwash before his fingers closed around a thick, round neck.

He jerked out the bottle, not caring what he knocked over and snatched up an unused syringe.

Syrus was trembling by the time he sat himself on the edge of the bathtub, already pulling the bung out of the large glass bottle.

It was labelled as being 'Silver Nitrate.' It was over half empty and there were another three empty bottles of the same design in the back of the cabinet.

Syrus wasn't exactly sure what the effects of exposure to silver nitrate were. All he knew was that he had been drinking and injecting small amounts periodically for the last few months, maybe the better part of a year and until the last couple or so, he hadn't felt anything. But recently he felt constantly tired and had frequent pains in his stomach and chest.

Not that he had told anyone, but he knew that Zane had noticed. He had caught him staring at him with such concern and – he grinned manically – Zane had looked useless and pathetic.

So he put up with the pain, just for the look on Zane's face, a look that told Syrus that he had won.

_I've beaten you Zane!_ he thought gleefully as he began to fill the syringe.

But his fingers were still numb and clumsy and he dropped it. He cursed, but couldn't move well enough to bend down for it.

_Guess its Plan B then._

Syrus threw back his head and chugged the majority of what remained in one go. He forgot to breath and ended up choking. He fell backwards as he spluttered, the bottle slipping from his grip and smashing on the bottom of the bathtub.

Zane had hammered down the door as soon as he heard the smash. His brother's clothes were covered in liquid and shards of glass, a syringe was on the floor, half full of something that he instinctively knew wasn't insulin.

"Syrus? Sy, can you hear me?" he shouted desperately.

_Okay, okay, keep calm, Zane. Just stay calm._

"Mom!" he called. "Mom, I need you to call the Hospital. _Now_!"

Zane couldn't wait for an ambulance, but he didn't want to wait at the Hospital either. The way he figured it, the best thing to do would be to drive Syrus himself while they readied themselves to receive and revive him.

If they could...

* * *

Zane stared sadly at his brother. The skin on his face, body and even the irises of his eyes had been dyed blue-grey, a condition that he had been told was known as 'Argyria' and permanent. It turned out that Syrus had been exposing himself to silver nitrate for some time. 

Zane was angry at himself for not knowing, or at least alerting someone to the fact that something - however seemingly insignificant -was wrong.

_All those things..._

He had no idea that his brother would have used his hobby in such a way. Zane reasoned that he had to have been taking huge bottles of the silver nitrate from the school darkrooms without them knowing just quite how much and what for.

What lasting damage he had done to himself physically was still unknown. The doctors warned that his kidneys, heart and lungs could later develop serious problems due to his substance abuse.

However, the psychological damage he had done to himself over the years was clearly obvious to all.

Zane couldn't help but blame himself despite the doctors' assurances that it was 'all self inflicted.'

"Is there anything you can do?" Zane had asked.

Sometimes, he wished he hadn't. Because before he knew it, Syrus had been moved from the Hospital to 'The Facility' even before he had fully regained consciousness, not that he ever fully regained his mind.

His heart filled with despair as he watched Syrus on a monitor, his unearthly eyes vacant and emotionless. For a moment, Zane felt that Syrus was staring straight at him, and knew that he was there.

"I won, Zane," the voice seemed to sing in a horrible, possessed way. "I finally beat you." Syrus laughed gleefully.

"I have it all now, Zane. I have friends that come to see me everyday. They're like my new family – they look after me in the way you never did – never could. And the teachers here – they tell me I'm clever, I'm the most cleverest person in the world, Zane, even cleverer than _you_. And she's here," he continued. "The Dark Magician Girl," he pointed to an empty white wall, coughing on his words slightly.

"See? I told you she was my girlfriend. She loves me and tells me that she'll stay with me forever. She's mine, Zane. Mine." He stopped for a moment, thinking. "But do you no what the best part is, Zane? There's no you. You're dead here. You don't exist. But then, there's no me, either."

Syrus laughed to himself again, his eyes darting around him all the time.

"That's because I'm dead, too! And do you know why? Because you didn't save me; you _failed_. You lost, and I won."

Zane felt drained and hollow as he stared at the ghost of his brother.

He took hold of the mike and pressed a button to open up the speaker system in Syrus' room.

"You're right, Sy."

Syrus froze when he heard his voice.

"I failed you as a big brother. I lost."

"You can't be speaking," Syrus chanted. "You can't be. You're not here – you're dead. You're dead. You're dead. You're _dead_!" he screamed.

"I am dead, Syrus. I died the same day you did," he paused, and noticed a tiny light glistening in his brother's expressionless eyes. "I'm dead because I love you too much to leave you."

Tears rolled down Syrus' face.

"I love you, Syrus."


End file.
